Nutritional yeast is one of the condiments we put on the table at every meal, sprinkling it over every plate of pasta, homemade pizza, and even salads.

Nutritional yeast does have a cheesey flavor—an umami tang that’s savory and complex, like seaweed or mushrooms. This ‘shroom comparison makes sense if you know that nutritional yeast is actually a fungus that’s grown on beets and molasses, then dried and sold as flakes or powder (sometimes in bulk) at natural-food stores.

Vegans love nutritional yeast because it usually contains vitamin B12—the one vitamin that can be tricky to get enough of on a plant-based diet. The vitamin content can vary from brand to brand, but you can generally expect to find a broad spectrum of B vitamins and minerals. Nutritional yeast has a lot of versatility in the kitchen. It can be added to gravies for extra-rich flavor and a vitamin boost, blended with chili powder and garlic and cooked up into a nacho cheese-like sauce, sprinkled over anything that might taste good with Parmesan cheese on it, and it has a special affinity with popcorn. I use this faux Parmesan as a base to which I sometimes add smoked paprika, chili powder, or other spices to give it even more flavor.

I was first introduced to jackfruit in southern India, where the edible orbs dangle from trees like prickly green footballs. In hot and steamy South Asia, they’re eaten fresh, cooked, and dried, in both sweet and savory preparations.

Thinking about going vegan, but not ready to give up cheese? You're certainly not alone. Many vegans have gone through a period where giving up cheese felt impossible. Pizza is one of my favorite foods, and I never thought I would be able to give it up.

Cornstarch has an unwarranted bad reputation, founded primarily on those ubiquitous gloopy sauces served at mediocre Chinese restaurants around the world. But the fluffy white powder does have its virtues!

When my dad was a teenager, he spent two years living in Japan, fully immersed in the local culture. Luckily for me, the culinary traditions made a lasting impact on him, so meals at our house were often punctuated by Japanese staples: rice, seaweed, umeboshi plums. Perhaps the most versatile Japanese export consumed at our house was miso, a thick, salty-sweet fermented paste typically made from soybeans (though it can also be made with barley, rice, or other grains).